The levy is showing up on rate notices currently being sent out by local government.
The VFF survey found nine in 10 farmers did not believe the Victorian Government understood local issues or had a positive plan to grow the $20 billion industry.
The survey attracted 719 responses.
In the Goulburn Valley region, farmers rated the levy, new taxes and regulations and roads and freight issues at the top of their concerns.
Huge increases to the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund, crumbling regional roads, maintaining the state’s biosecurity and forcing renewable energy infrastructure developments on communities topped the list of concerns in the VFF’s inaugural State of the State: Victorian Farmer Priorities Survey.
VFF president Brett Hosking said the frank results should ring alarm bells for the government and be a wake-up call for genuine engagement and discussion with farmers and rural communities.
“Farmers and our regional communities have sent a blunt message that they aren’t being listened to and have lost faith that our Victorian Government has their back,” he said.
“From massive increases to the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund, roads literally falling apart and communities being steamrolled in the face of renewable energy infrastructure, farmers have a lot to worry about.
“More than 92 per cent of farmers don’t believe the Victorian Government understands or is even listening to the concerns of farming communities. That’s a massive indictment and it must change, because they’ve lost the trust of these farming communities.”
Despite the blunt results of the survey, Mr Hosking said there remained considerable opportunity and a bright outlook for Victorian agriculture.
“Victorian farmers are the best in the nation at what they do. We produce 25 per cent of Australia’s food and fibre value using just three per cent of Australia’s farmland. We employ more than 150,000 people and contribute more than $20 billion to Victoria’s and Australia’s economy,” he said.
“When we have the nation’s best farmers working on the nation’s best farmland, imagine what we could achieve if our Victorian and Australian governments supported our farmers to achieve even more.
“We’re just over 12 months from the next state election. We want to support all sides of politics to get solutions to these issues and grow Victoria’s farming future.”
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